Vancouver police promise upgrades to psychological testing following inquest

“I agree with all of the recommendations that came out of the coroner’s inquest. I don’t think they’ll be hard to implement and I think it’s something we can move on quite quickly,” Palmer said.

“There’s a few in there that do require some financial support, but from talking with the board, I’m pretty sure we’re going to get that support, we’re going to be able to move forward with all of those recommendations.”

Chan died in 2019. An inquest jury earlier this year heard that before her death she’d had relationships with two senior officers and accused one of them of extorting her to continue a sexual relationship.

Witnesses testified Chan was anxious about workplace rumours and felt she had been taken advantage of while she was severely depressed.

The report estimates that implementing all eight recommendations would cost between $433,000 to $543,000 a year.

Palmer said the department is “going to start moving on almost all” of the recommendations right away.

Larger dollar amounts that need to be part of ongoing annual funding will have to be approved by the board this year, and later city council for the 2024 budget, Palmer said.

He said the department can start expanding its mental-health check-in program, but it will take until the end of the year for full funding to make that a department-wide practice.

The report to the board said psychological interviews for new recruits currently occur on a case-by-case basis as potential issues are identified.

Under the new plan, the department is committing to implement two online tests it said are “industry standards that assess psychological resilience as part of the occupational requirements” and following those up with a psychological interview.

Palmer said the updates for new recruits “can happen very quickly” because it’s a relatively small pool of people.

One of the tests is a police-specific assessment tool used to summarize 16 personality factors. It also provides an interpretation of how someone’s work style impacts performance in areas such as safety, communication, teamwork and use of force.

The second test assesses deficits of judgment and decision-making skills as well as positive personality features, the report says.

The department said it will update respectful workplace online training for all staff starting this fall. Both the training and the department’s policy will include rumours and gossip as an example of unprofessional behaviour.

The department also said there will be more training for managers and human-resources staff, and a review of staffing levels when it comes to human-resource or peer-support workers.

Inquest juries don’t make findings of legal responsibility following a death but are asked to provide recommendations to prevent similar deaths in the future.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 20, 2023

Ashley Joannou, The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press

Vancouver police promise upgrades to psychological testing following inquest

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